ここに行くには～How to get There – ページ 38 – 日本200名城バイリンガル (Japan's top 200 castles and ruins)

167.Shingu Castle Part3

The ruins are still developing.

Features

Other Enclosures

Other than that, a small enclosure, called Demaru or Barbican, sticks out of the Main Enclosure towards the river. It looks sharp and cool. It was used to look outside. Because of it, a view of the Kumano-gawa River from around the enclosure is so great.

The map around the castle

You can also climb down to the Water Supply Enclosure beside the river from the Matsunomaru Enclosure if the path is open. It was recently excavated and discovered that it was used as a trade route of the charcoal product which have been known as Binchotan until now. The area around has been developed for visitors to walk around after the excavation.

The path to the Mizunote Enclosure from the Matsunomaru Enclosure

The whole view of the Water Supply Enclosure

The stone walls of The Water Supply Enclosure

The promenade along the Kumano-gawa River

Another attraction of the castle is the remaining stone walls of the Second Enclosure at the foot of the hill. The inside of it is used as a kindergarten, but you can see the stone walls outside, which still stands out among the city area. You should also check out the corner of the walls, which are piled using rectangular stones alternating each other in a method called Sangi-zumi.

The corner of the walls, piled using rectangular stones alternating each other

Later History

Shingu Castle was abandoned after the Meiji Restoration. All of the castle buildings were demolished. The ruins were eventually privately-owned, as a result, the Ryokan opened in the Kanenomaru Enclosure in 1952. Other amusement facilities, like a cable car and a beer garden, also opened around the Main Enclosure. The modification of the enclosure was probably done at that time. In 1980, Shingu City bought the ruins to make them to convert them into a park. The city has been researching and preserving the ruins since they were designated as a National Historic Site in 2003. The city is also thinking about restoring some castle buildings in the future.

The trace of the platform of the cable car below the Main Enclosure

My Impression

I think Shingu Castle Ruins has a big potential to be a great historical site, and soon this will happen. I also think that the city has a lot of things for visitors to do. It at least has to classify historical items and other items first in order to make people understand what they were. Then, it also has to preserve them in good condition before they start restoring some buildings. I would like to go back to the ruins again once the situation has improved.

The current situation of the Mian Enclosure

How to get There

It is about a 40-minute drive away from Kumano-Odomari IC on the Kumano-Owase Road. There is a parking lot halfway up the hill near the eastern entrance of the park to the Main Enclosure.
If you want to use public transportation, It takes about 15 minutes on foot from JR Shingu Station.
To get to Shingu Station from Tokyo: Take the Tokaido Shinkansen super express, and transfer to the Nanki super express at Nagoya Station.

That’s all. Thank you.
Back to “Shingu Castle Part1”
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167.新宮城　その３

この城跡は発展途上です。

特徴、見どころ

他の曲輪群

それ以外には、出丸と呼ばれる小さな曲輪が本丸から川に向かって突き出ています。その鋭い様がとてもかっこよく見えます。かつては城の外部を見張るために使われました。このため、出丸周辺からの熊野川一帯の景色はとても素晴らしいです。

城周辺の地図

また、松ノ丸からの道が通れるときには、そこから下って水ノ手郭に行くことができます（松ノ丸からの通路が閉鎖されているときには、川沿いの方から行けます）。この場所は近年発掘され、現在「備長炭」として知られる木炭の交易路として使われていました。この辺は発掘後、ビジターが歩いて回れるよう整備されました。

もう一つの見どころは、丘の麓に残っている二ノ丸の石垣です。二ノ丸の内部は幼稚園として使われていますが、外側の石垣は見学できます。今は周辺が市街地となっている中でもひと際目立っています。その石垣の角部分は、算木積みという手法で長方形に加工した石が交互に積み上げられており、これも見ものです。

その後

新宮城は、明治維新後廃城となりました。城の全ての建物は撤去されました。そしてその結果、城跡は民間所有となったのです。1952年には鐘ノ丸に旅館が開業しました。他にもケーブルカー（日本一短いケーブルカー路線と言われました）やビアガーデンなどが本丸に作られました。本丸の大きな改変は、恐らくそのときになされたのでしょう。1980年に新宮市が城跡を買い取り、公園としました。新宮市は、2003年に城跡が国の史跡となって以来、調査や保存を進めています。また、将来城の建物を復元することも検討しています。

私の感想

新宮城跡は、優れた史跡としての潜在能力を持っていますし、それはもうすぐ実現するでしょう。ただ、新宮市にはビジターに対してやることがたくさんあるとも思うのです。少なくともまず、城跡としての遺物とそれ以外のものを明確に区別する必要があります。ビジターに城がどのようであったのか理解してもらうためです。そして、次に城跡関連のものを、良好な状態で保存することです。そのくらいは建物を復元する前にやってほしいです。城跡の状況が改善したら、是非また訪れてみたいです。

ここに行くには

車で行く場合：熊野尾鷲道路の熊野大泊ICから約４０分かかります。公園の東側入口から本丸に行く中腹部分に駐車場があります。
公共交通機関を使う場合は、ＪＲ新宮駅から歩いて１５分のところです。
東京から新宮駅まで：東海道新幹線に乗って、名古屋駅で特急南紀号に乗り換えてください。

リンク、参考情報

・新宮城跡（丹鶴城跡）、新宮市観光協会
・「よみがえる日本の城１」学研
・「日本の城改訂版第６０号」デアゴスティーニジャパン

これで終わります。ありがとうございました。
「新宮城その１」に戻ります。
「新宮城その２」に戻ります。

155.Akagi Castle Part3

What was the most important value of this castle?

Features

Long narrow Western Ridge with Tiered Stone Walls

Consider visiting the western ridge as well. It has four tiered enclosures, which are also surrounded by stone walls, on the long narrow ridge. It had buildings including a warehouse. It doesn’t have a complex route like the eastern ridge, but the sides of it are artificially cut vertically to prevent enemies from attacking easily. If you look up the tiered stone walls to the Main Enclosure, they look so impressive.

The aerial photo around the castle

The western ridge seen from the Main Enclosure

Looking up the Main Enclosure from the western ridge

The stone walls of the Western Enclosure I

The stone foundations in the Western Enclosure II (Building ruins)

You can also climb down from the edge of it to the valley between the eastern and western ridges, called the Southern Enclosures. It is thought to be used for living quarters as the remains of cooking stoves were found there, and it seems like an obvious location because of the convenience of access.

The Southern Enclosures seen from above (The Southern Enclosure II in the center)

The Southern Enclosures (The Southern Enclosure III in the front)

Later History

After Akagi Castle was abandoned, many of its stone walls collapsed. This was because some of them were destroyed by the final occupants of the castle to show the castle could be no longer used, and others collapsed naturally over long periods of time. The ruins also got overgrown with trees and bushes. However, since they were designated as a National Historic Site in 1989, Kumano City researched and restored the ruins mainly by re-piling and repairing the stone walls, finishing 2004. For example, they reused the original stones as much as possible, but in the parts where that was not possible, they built new stone walls like the original, indicating with signs that this was not original structure.

The Eastern Enclosure before the restoring, form the signboard at the site

The stone walls of the Eastern Enclosure II after the restoring

The ruins have recently become popular as they sometimes look like a Castle in the Sky above the clouds in certain weather conditions.

The image of the Castle in the Sky, form the signboard at the site

My Impression

Of the ten or so of Takatora Todo’s great works I think this is the first of them to be built. He was in an area which was still surrounded by possible enemies who were heavily armed. I also think when he built the castle, he considered how to protect himself and his soldiers during the construction even if they were attacked by guns. The layout of the castle seems to protect the center from direct gunfire. I believe one of the most important values of the castle was that Takatora achieved this combining the original conditions at the site such as natural terrain and current technologies like building stone walls.

How to get There

If you want to visit the castle ruins by car, it is about 40 minutes from Kumano-Odomari IC on the Kumano-Owase Road. There is a parking lot below the eastern ridge of the castle.
By public transportation, it would be better to use a rental car from Kumanoshi Station or Shingu Station on the JR Kisei Line as there are few or no buses for the site from these stations.
To get to these stations from Tokyo: Take the Tokaido Shinkansen super express, transfer to the Nanki limited express at Nagoya Station.

The castle ruins seen from the parking lot

That’s all. Thank you.
Back to “Akagi Castle Part1”
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